[blam]

"Many families in my area save their seeds that their forefathers brought over from Europe and often gift friends with them."

Somewhere in my freezer, I believe I have some seeds that were my grandmothers'...I'm 70 so they are pretty old. I don't know if they'll germinate after all these years.

[Foundahardheadedwoman]

Try a batch and I’ll bet you will get at least some hardy survivors. Save those seeds and pass them on to your kids and friends. They may well soon be worth more than gold.
Read an article recently about an archeological dig that dug up a boat and found some wheat seeds I believe, they were thought to be 2000 years old. They planted some and were surprised to see them sprout. This was a couple of years ago and I trust the source.